Seniors prepare for life after college

As the new semester begins, most students are focused on classes, but for some University of South Dakota seniors, their thoughts are already drifting to life after college.

Senior Stephen Nielson, a health services and administration major, said he has already applied to graduate schools throughout the Midwest.

“There’s a lot of opportunities for administration in health care if you get a grad school degree,” Nielson said. “A lot of people go back to school anyways, so I thought I might as well just finish it all up.”

Nielson said he’s narrowed the search for graduate schools down to four options. Some of the main factors that went into his search included programs that have his fiancé’s graduate program — communication sciences and disorders — and the location.

“I kind of wanted to go somewhere new and try something different, but I also kind of wanted to stay close to home,” Nielson said.

To apply for the graduate programs Nielson created a resume, wrote a personal statement and lined up references for his applications.

“I went to the career and resume services here in the library and then I also had my mom — who’s a professor at Dakota Wesleyan — look at it,”  Nielson said.

Kasandra Girard, the employer relations and internship coordinator at the Academic and Career Planning Center, said she has helped about 41 students prepare for jobs and internships since starting her position in September 2014.

To prepare students, Girard conducts mock interviews, helps students write personal statements and resumes and connect students to potential employers.

“First impressions are everything when you’re interviewing for positions for jobs,” Girard said.

When writing resumes, Girard said students should tailor them to the description of the job they are applying for.

“You really need to look at the job description and pull out the key skills they are asking for, and you need to have those in your resume,” Girard said. “If you possess those (skills) in any way, shape or form from any past work experience or from any experience you’ve had at USD — it’s really helping students think about all of their experiences and putting them into a resume that will hopefully get them a job.”

According to statistics collected by the Office of Academic Evaluation and Assessment, 1,275 USD students graduated in the 2013-2014 year.

Out of those 1,275 students, a total of 701 responded to a survey about employment six months after graduation and 70.4 percent of responders indicated they found “satisfactory employment,” had been accepted into a graduate school or were entering the military.

For some seniors, life after college does not hold the promise of fitting into those three categories and is a frightening prospect.

Senior Matthew Whyte, a history major, said he plans on going back to his hometown of Avoca, Iowa to work as a bartender at a local golf course club house.

After saving his money he wants to move to Omaha and become a radio broadcaster. Whyte said he plans on starting his job search soon. 

“(What) I think about — every day at least once — is the future, the unknown. We’ve been safe in college for the last four years,” Whyte said. “Once you’re done now you’re like ‘now real life starts.’ That’s the hardest thing.”

(Photo: Kasandra Girard, an employer relations and internship coordinator with the Academic Career and Planning Center, talks with junior Ezekiel Lewis about looking for an internship Jan. 30. Ally Krupinsky / The Volante)